


Of Notable Eminence

by reylocalligraphy



Series: Fanfic of Others' Fanfic [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Banter, Cinnamon roll stan, Fanfic for a fanfic, Fluff, Food, Of particular salience, Rose deserves to live a happy life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-27
Updated: 2019-09-27
Packaged: 2020-10-26 15:04:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20744171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reylocalligraphy/pseuds/reylocalligraphy
Summary: “Ha!” Rose exclaims. “I knew it. I knew it! I knew I could get something out of your big mouth.” She leans forward, eyes gleaming with excitement. “You basically just confirmed that Starfighter Corps will end with a successful romance. Between the main character and the villain.”Ziff opens, then closes his mouth, knowing he’s been caught. “I… I didn’t say that,” he fumbles.**A short birthday ficlet for Dalzo!





	Of Notable Eminence

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Dalzo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dalzo/gifts).

> Inspired by Dalzo's incredible Reylo fic [Of Particular Salience](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13009584/chapters/29750175), which has made my life infinitely better since I started reading it. I found the Rose/Ziff pairing epic from the start, and I love Rose (cinnamon roll!), so I had to write a scene featuring them.

“Welcome to Pho Tico! Our special today is the—” Rose glances up from her notepad. Her eyes widen, startled, roaming over the familiar eyes gazing back at her, a sea of bright blue glimmering with the shine of encrusted diamonds. “Oh.” Her mind draws to a stuttered blank, and her mouth falls open. “ _ Oh. _ ”

“ _ Oh _ indeed.” The man in front of her grins widely. “What did you say the special is?”

“You’re back,” she breathes out. 

“How could I not be?” Ziff asks. “Wonderful food and quite delightful company, how could I not return to my new favorite restaurant?”

“Well, aren’t you ever the charmer,” Rose says dryly. Inside, however, she’s thrilled. And terrified. She feels like she could burst into flames at any moment from both the joy of seeing Ziff again, and from the embarrassment of not preparing for this moment. Why,  _ why _ did she wear her old uniform today? With the wrinkled, stained apron, the many strands of hair falling out of her lopsided bun, Rose is confident she’ll scare Ziff away by the end of the night.

“I’m just telling the truth, but I’ll take that as a compliment too. You see, I’m still relatively new to Vietnamese food, care to introduce me to more?” 

“Right.” It’s a reminder to how fast everything has moved recently, that she and Ziff had only just met last night. “But, uh, didn’t you technically go on a date with my friend Rey? Just yesterday?” Disappointment seeps into her mind, but Rose would always prioritize her friendship and loyalty to Rey over any prospective romantic chances. Even if Rey does seem to have a…  _ complicated _ relationship with her attractive, mysterious artist friend already. “I’m really flattered and would love to join you, but I can’t do that to my friend.”

“Rose, you and I know both know that Rey has zero interest in me. She’s head over heels over the artist dude. And ditto for him too—did you see how he barged in on her date like that?” He sighs in an exaggerated manner, shoulders heaving and hands clasping over his heart. “Like a romantic drama cinematic masterpiece! That’s Pride and Prejudice level shit, you know.” 

She can’t help but smile. It is Ziff’s dramatic, artistic flair that made Rose so instantly curious about him the previous night. “Yeah, I do. I definitely know that.”

“Maybe this will spur them into action,” Ziff contemplates. “She finally gave in to her feelings. He gave in to an act of jealousy. Hollywood movies dictate that this is a recipe for romance.”

“And I thought  _ I _ was a romantic,” Rose laughs. “How much romance do you consume on a daily basis?”

“Well, it’s related to my line of work after all, so you could say it’s my job—”

“Ha!” Rose exclaims. “I knew it. I knew it! I knew I could get something out of your big mouth.” She leans forward, eyes gleaming with excitement. “You basically just confirmed that Starfighter Corps will end with a successful romance. Between the main character and the villain.”

Ziff opens, then closes his mouth, knowing he’s been caught. “I… I didn’t say that,” he fumbles. Still speechless, he leans back into his chair, slightly deflated, steadily refusing to meet her proud, triumphant gaze.

Rose documents this beautiful moment in her memory—she’s sure that Ziff is rarely caught off guard like this. 

“I didn’t say anything.” The words rush out of his mouth in a frantic stream. “You came to that conclusion on your own. All by yourself. I can neither confirm or deny anything you hypothesized—theorized—speculated. Isn’t that right?”

She grins widely. Oh, how the tables have turned. “Mhmm, of course,” she says with a knowing wink. “It’ll be our little secret.”

“Well, if you want to get more secrets—that may or may not be false—out of me, I insist you join me for dinner.” Ziff smiles brightly at her, flashing his pearly white teeth. Trust this man to turn the tables back to his agenda. “The food here is quite lovely, if I may say so myself—”

“Is that so?” Rose pretends to think. Then, her face sobers up. “As much as I would love to, I really can’t.” She glances around at all the other waiting customers, the growing line of bowls to pick up, the never-ending amount of tables to clean. “I’m the only waitress on the shift right now.”

His smile shrinks, but he isn’t willing to give up yet. “Oh, uh, that’s—that’s fine. I can wait until your shift ends.”

“It—it lasts until three in the morning,” she responds weakly, her lips pulling up into a trying smile. (Is the smile for him? Or for her own sake?) “I… I’m really sorry.”

And with that quickly uttered apology, Rose dashes back into this kitchen. She realizes that she didn’t wait for his response, nor has she even taken his order. What she does know, however, is that she must stop this before her feelings started to run too deep. 

Rose has always believed that dating is inherently selfish. It’s a choice that only benefits two people, though she only considers her utility. It takes away her time spent with her friends and family, and most importantly: it distracts her from Pho Tico. 

This restaurant is her life, her soul, her baby. It was what allowed their family to survive and stay in the United States. Rose would never forget how, growing up, she spent night after night in Pho Tico—helping her parents around the kitchen, serving customers, or simply grinding out homework exercises at a corner booth. One could argue that this business is inherently part of the Ticos, tied intricately in ways others could never understand. And now that her parents are gone, helping Pho Tico prosper is Rose’s way of remembering them. Honoring their hard work, every sweat and tear they sacrificed so she and Paige could go to school and lead the amazing lives they now have.

Throwing all that away for a relationship is risky. Foolish, even. 

But  _ would _ she really be throwing everything away? What if the  _ real _ risk is throwing away this chance? The chance born from a spark that ignited the moment she met Ziff. How often will she get to meet someone like that?

What if she allows herself to make one—just one—decision for  _ herself _ for once?

What if…?

Rose turns on her heel, jaw set, as the wheels in her mind begin to churn. She grabs a pen and hastily scribbles something on the back of a spare post-it note, before she dashes to the kitchen to retrieve one plate of that night’s special.

“One Pho Ap Chao Bo, tonight’s special, as requested.” She places the dish in front of Ziff, trying with all her might to not meet his curious gaze; his bright, inquisitive eyes that could draw her in a single moment. “These are pan-fried pho noodles with beef slices. Please enjoy.”

He blinks. “I—uh—thank you.” For the second time that night, he’s speechless. 

She begins to turn away, preparing to serve the next customer (who frankly has been waiting for quite a while, bless her patience). 

“Wait, Rose, you dropped this—”

Rose walks away with quick strides, a flush creeping up from her chest to her cheeks. Her heart hammers against her chest, but it’s done now. A smile blossoms across her lips; a smile of pride, at finally choosing something for herself; a smile of thrill, at taking a risk she doesn’t know the result to; a smile of hope, at the infinite sea of possibilities awaiting her.

There’s nothing she can do now but wait.

⇋ ⇌ ⇋ ⇌ ⇋ ⇌

Ziff knows he’s staring at her back as she walks away, but he can’t help it. 

He thought he had come on too strong, blowing any and all chances with Rose, after she had quietly left earlier. But then, she came back with a plate of food, while remaining strictly professional. Yet her face told a completely different story. Her eyes gleamed with mischief; her cheeks, tinged with a splash of pink; her soft, plush bottom lip, held roughly by her top teeth.

This woman is going to be the death of him. He is sure of it.

He looks down at his dish, inhaling and savoring the beautiful aroma. One bite into the crispy noodles, and Ziff is already in love. 

His gaze turns back to the crumpled post-it note that Rose dropped on the table, one he supposes was used to write down what order the dish is. Ziff frowns at it, the inner artist in him cringing at the waste of such valuable paper, and straightens the post-it, carefully smoothing out the wrinkles and edges. 

Naturally, he flips the post-it over to continue his smoothing motion, and he blinks. His hands pause in the air, food forgotten, and he forgets to breathe. 

For the second time that night, Ziff finds himself speechless.

Tonight might not work, but tomorrow does ;)  
  
827-198-9827

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY ETERNAL FANDOM BESTIE!!! Thank you for always being there for me. For your eternal encouragement and support. For yeeting such beautiful, unbelievable talent at us in the form of your writing and music. May the Force be with you in the next year <3


End file.
